Edwards Calls For Return Of Depression Era Programs

[struggle4progress]

POSTED: 5:13 pm CDT September 18, 2005
UPDATED: 5:19 pm CDT September 18, 2005

INDIANOLA, Iowa -- Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards is calling for a return of depression era job programs to rebuild the hurricane ravaged Gulf Coast.

Edwards said those programs would not only help rebuild the Gulf Coast but help rebuild the lives of the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

He was the keynote speaker at Sen. Tom Harkin's annual steak fry this afternoon near Indianola, where more than 1,300 Democratic activists gathered to hear the former vice presidential candidate speak. <snip>

http://www.theiowachannel.com/news/4988847/detail.html

[miss_kitty]

1. I agree

I've been saying that for awhile-more accurately, we need Roosevelt era TYPE changes in this society now.

[Double T]

2. If bushco continues running this country's economic situation.....

into bankruptcy, we WILL have the RETURN of Depression Era Programs, whether we like it or not.

[BlueJac]

3. Can't keep living on borrowed money!

We must repeal the tax cuts for the rich. 386 Billion over the next few years will help alot.

[lumpy]

12. Definately agree.

Trickle down economics is faulty. The Republican's favorite solution hasn't worked yet. One of the reasons, probably, that JFK was 'offed' was his plan to eliminate unfair tax shelters favoring the wealthy. Since Reagan's administration the escalation of tax shelters and business deregulation has brought the US economic unbalance.

[bluestateguy]

4. I'd like to see the OEO brought back

That was the agency that ran most of LBJ's War on Poverty programs.

[Robert Oak]

5. Edwards

I think much more of him now that he is trying to get some action on poverty.

They could fix a lot of what was done from lessons learned in the efforts to reduce poverty but there is no doubt that FDR's programs
saved millions from starving and suffering and should be put back into place.

FDR was often defeated by the Supreme court in his programs until about 1937 and by then the war was here so Kenyesian economics was supplainted by war spending..

so really we don't know how well they worked except for the ones
that have been in place since that time.
Social security, Medicare, unemployment insurance.

[1932]

24. From '32 to '36 the economy grew every year as FDR brought on line

Keynesian programs (without being completely sold on Keynes).

In '37, FDR's Sec of Treas. Morganthaus convinced FDR not to run deficits and the US slipped into a minidepression (which hurt Democrats in the '38 elections).

One result of the minidepression was that it convinced Democrats Keynes was right. From '38 to '41 (even with a Congress that wasn't helping FDR as much -- Southern Ds often sided with Republicans), the economy did better and better.

In fact, consumer demand was so strong that FDR had a hard time convincing factories to switch from consumer goods to war goods, with the big three being especially reluctant.

After WW2, Harry Truman sided with the business/miltary Keynesians, which wasn't true Keynes -- and we've seen the consequences of that. I think there's been a huge opportunity cost to that.

You can read about all this in Richard Parker's Galbraith biography.

[dogman]

6. How about restoring Davis-Bacon so the workers receive fair pay?

We don't need a jobs program for this, we need guest workers kept out and prevailing wages paid. I'm sure there was a construction industry in place before the storm. This doesn't make sense to layer in another administrative body that the Bushies would exempt form existing labor contracts. The depression programs were designed to make work, Katrina has already done that.

[MrTriumph]

7. Stupid idea, Mr. Edwards. We need to close the borders to illegals.

The jobs are here. All we need is to force employers to pay a decent wage by keeping illegals out. And that might force governments that protect economically repressive systems to change.

[gtar100]

9. Reframe....Make hiring illegal aliens illegal

I can't fault *anyone* for coming here for work when it's available. Don't blame the undocumented workers. You'd be a lowlife jerk to your family if you wouldn't be willing to do the same thing as these people have done just to put food on the table, a roof over their head and clothes on their back. The United States, at the behest of wealthy corporate owners, has set out a welcome mat to anyone who needs work. It's simply lip service to the problem by trying to "crack down on illegal immigration" through raids and border patrols. Those activities will NEVER solve the immigration problem because they do not address the "root cause".

Make *hiring* of illegal workers a crime punishable by fines and prison time to be done by the business owners and illegal immigration will quickly come to an end.

But under the *ush administration, pigs will fly first before they do anything like holding business owners responsible for their selling out of the United States (by means of outsourcing jobs to other countries and allowing undocumented workers to hold jobs at substandard wages).

[BlueJac]

22. I agree totally

[calimary]

23. Welcome to DU!

That's why we have to GET RID OF THIS SCHMUCK.

As long as he's setting policy and making decisions and calling the shots, we are not only NOT SAFE, we are flooring it toward economic suicide. You're correct. He won't EVER do ANYTHING to compell businesses and corporations to be more responsible and accountable to their communities. EVER. As long as he's the boss, that will NOT happen.

This is one leopard that won't change his spots, no matter what kind of words his speechwriters and handlers and PR fix-it spinners put into his mouth for the cameras and microphones. He wouldn't know how to, anyway. It's just not in him. Never has been.

PLEASE HELP US GET RID OF HIM.

Visualize IMPEACHMENT!!!!!!
And then call your reps TOLL FREE and DEMAND it.

1 (877) 762 - 8762 - Capitol Hill Switchboard. They'll transfer you anywhere.

[1932]

25. What profit there is in America often comes from

the same countries illegal immigrations comes from.

Recently, a friend returned from a business trip in Mexico where she met with doctors engaged in health studies. In the US, thanks to the CDC and to universities, a lot of health research now focuses on a broad range of causes, including social factors. My friend said that all the Mexican research is only on pharmacological solutions. Why? Because the only funding for research comes from the pharmeceutical industry. In other words, even with this one small example, western corporations treat developing countries as a wealth-extraction project. Where's that money going? To the US. And how can you blame people for wanting to come to the US to mow the lawns of the all the BigPharma execs and employees getting rich of their misery? The more money we take from developing countries, the higher you're going to have to build the walls to keep people from trying to make a small bit of that money back. And considering the huge differences in wealth, I don't think you can really build a wall high enough.

[hopein08]

13. Were we reading the same article?

I read the article provided when I clicked on the link in the original message and didn't see anything about illegal immigrants. So then I re-read it to see if I missed something, and I didn't. So I was just wondering how you see this as a "stupid idea" because we need to close the borders. I think Edwards knows we have to provide for the American workers first and most importantly. So, if you could explain, I'd appreciate it very much.

[Bridget Burke]

19. It's easy to blame all our problems on people of another race.

For some people, "the illegals" are all-round scapegoats.

[jwirr]

14. I doubt he suggested the programs be for aliens. The men and

women who are setting in those trailers need jobs and the CCC program was not only a country builder it was also a life builder. I worked in a museum that had quite a few CCC displays and the old men would stop by to look at the pictures and tell me about their time in the CCC. All considered it the turning point in their lives. It could be the same in NO and also in other inner city renewals.

[bleedingheart]

17. There is NOTHING in that article about hiring illegals

the Depression era programs were to employ AMERICANS.


CCC, WPA, TVA...big programs used to create parks, roads and dams....all employed Americans.

[confludemocrat]

8. Start by restoring Davis/Bacon and then fill in with ethically-admin'd

programs that allow local grassroots, small businesses to lead the work not be subcontractors of Halliburton and Bechtel paying below-living wages. Edwards has offered the only truly alternative approach to Bush. Now be straightforward and talk about taxes and reemphasize the role of racial and social justice in how this is done.

[chimpymustgo]

10. Edwards called for a series of programs, tax changes and support

for poor and middle-class families. Rewarding work and not wealth. He was talking about this when no one else was.

[lumpy]

11. Perhaps Edwards was referring to:

http://www.marist.edu/summerscholars/96/fdrhome.htm
Under FDR's New Deal:
WPA-Works Progress Administration
CCC-Civilian Conservation Corps
Programs such as these during FDR's administration were effective work programs in relieving unemployment, economic problems. Good idea? It worked for us living in the 30's depression era.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

15. I think they should build CCC style camps in the NO vicinity

so people can live near their homes as they work to rebuild their city. Shipping them out to the boonies is not going to help these people!

[dogman]

16. That would be fine if those were the problems.

Katrina has created the work programs, they don't need to be created. There are already structures in place without adding bureaucracy. We saw how this regime did that in Iraq. They rewarded the Freeper type thugs who protested the recount in Florida with jobs running the rebuilding of Iraq. Cronyism has already proved they could destroy a capable organization like FEMA. Imagine them running the rebuilding of the afflicted area.

[dogman]

18. Do something positive now!

Go here and let Congress know what's right.
http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/post_Katrina_attack

[Mairead]

20. Kucinich called for that 2 years ago, to revive the whole country

Of course he got no publicity for it at all.

[genieroze]

21. Edwards better not hold his breath, those are the type of programs

that * is trying to get rid of. He's the anti FDR.

[redqueen]

26. Great idea...

too bad the repugs control congress and hate helping anyone but their rich buddies.